UK women’s basketball players lead social justice march through campus
Members of the University of Kentucky women’s basketball team on Wednesday led an event called “A Journey To Equality: Social Justice March and Unity Fair” that was held on the school’s campus as part of the ongoing social justice movement that has grown in the wake of several high-profile incidents in which Black citizens have been killed by police officers.
The rally — which was organized by members of the team — began at William T. Young Library, where junior star Rhyne Howard gave a brief speech thanking the crowd for attending and Pastor Richard Gaines of Consolidated Baptist Church in Lexington led the group in a prayer.
Gaines said several members of the UK women’s team who are part of his congregation approached him about participating.
“And I was thrilled to do it,” Gaines said. “I’m a product of the ‘60s civil rights movement and everything up until now. So to see this generation of young people stepping up who realize there’s more at stake than just playing ball on a hardwood floor and using their voice for a great cause — I commend them.”
The sizable crowd, which included players from multiple UK sports teams and staffs as well as students and other community members, marched from the library through campus while chanting slogans such as “We want equality” and “Black lives matter,” eventually stopping across the street from Memorial Coliseum at Wildcat Alumni Plaza, which was set up to host the unity fair.
UK senior KeKe McKinney, who was instrumental in organizing the event, said the idea was spawned weeks ago as players in professional sports leagues across the country took steps to protest police brutality.
“Everybody was sitting out practices and games and we decided to do the same,” McKinney said in a Zoom teleconference. “So, we decided to skip out on one practice and we literally just came up with what we wanted to do. At first it was just going to be a march, and then some of our teammates added on that we wanted to do more things that were hands-on … It came together and I’m so excited about how the end results came out today, it was really amazing.”
The crowd for the march and unity fair included UK volleyball coach Craig Skinner, UK women’s soccer coach Ian Carry and UK women’s basketball assistant coaches Kyra Elzy and Niya Butts. UK women’s head coach Matthew Mitchell did not attend because he is still recovering from brain surgery in late June, according to a spokesperson from the school. Mitchell’s wife, Jenna, and their two youngest daughters did participate.
Wednesday evening, Matthew Mitchell posted the following statement on Twitter: “I could not be prouder of this team for all their hard work in organizing and planning this important event! I firmly stand behind them as they help lead the charge to end racism and inequality in our country!”
McKinney and Olivia Owens — a transfer from Maryland — spoke to the crowd to begin the fair. McKinney and Chloe Abbott — who was a senior for the track and field team last season — then sang the Black national anthem “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”
Sophomore forward Dre’una Edwards recited a poem she wrote detailing several of the incidents that have ignited the current social justice movement — including the killing of Breonna Taylor by Louisville police — before the crowd began to mingle and music was played over the outdoor speaker system. Many participants wore “Black Lives Matter” shirts and everyone in the crowd appeared to be wearing masks in order to mitigate the risk of COVID-19.
“Just having the support … was really good,” McKinney said. “Everybody was really positive, it was a good vibe overall. It was like a family cookout even though they were strangers. So the vibes there were all positive and I loved every second of it.”
The event came two days after the UK women’s basketball team released a video expressing solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, similar to the one released by the UK men’s basketball team in late August.
The men’s team received some backlash on social media over its video. Asked about the criticism leveled at the men’s team and whether she worried the UK women would face the same, Howard said, “I feel like if people have a problem with what we’re saying or how we’re expressing ourselves then they can just see themselves to the door.”
At Wednesday’s unity fair, booths were set up which included information about mental health awareness, the Black Lives Matter movement and voter registration resources. Members of the UK women’s basketball team interacted with the crowd and there was even a bit of coordinated dancing. Later, UK Police Department Chief of Police Joe Monroe participated in a question-and-answer session.
Owens said the interaction with Monroe made her feel much more comfortable about living on her new college campus.
“We felt like it was important to have a conversation … with the campus police because what we want to do is we want to be able to bring together the Black community and also police officers to reestablish the relationship and to gain trust,” Owens said. “I feel like a lot of times people think that the Black Lives Matter movement is anti-police, and that’s not it at all … We wanted to show that we can work together, that was our goal.
“I think it was really cool to be able to talk to him. He’s a really cool guy just as a person, and hearing his answers to our questions …made me feel more comfortable being on campus to be quite honest with you.”
The team has not yet developed concrete plans for further social justice advocacy, but it appears ideas are churning.
“We’re not done as far as talking about social injustice. We’re far from done,” Owens said. “We definitely have more things coming.”
This story was originally published September 16, 2020 at 4:55 PM.
